Diabetes is a disease in which a mammal's ability to regulate glucose levels in the blood is impaired because the mammal has a reduced ability to convert glucose to glycogen for storage in muscle and liver cells. In Type I diabetes, this reduced ability to store glucose is caused by reduced insulin production. Type II diabetes mellitus (also known as non-insulin dependent diabetes) is the form of diabetes which is due to a profound resistance to insulin stimulating or regulatory effect on glucose metabolism in the main insulin-sensitive tissues (muscle, liver and adipose tissue) which occurs in association with relative β cell dysfunction.
Current treatment for diabetes mellitus generally first involves treatment with diet and exercise. However, compliance can be poor and as the disease progresses treatment with hypoglycemics, typically sulfonylureas, thiazolidinediones, or metformin, is often necessary. However, in many patients, these pharmaceutical agents prove inadequate for maintaining blood glucose at an acceptable level and injection with insulin is necessary. Since insulin injection has the life threatening side effect of hypoglycemic coma, patients using insulin injections must carefully control dosage.
Therefore, a need exists for new pharmaceutical agents which prevent, treat and/or alleviate diabetes and related complications of the disease without imposing on the patient burdensome and complicated treatment regimes which may effect patient compliance.